Secret Lovers
by spyder-m
Summary: Because Uzumaki Naruto wasn't as clueless as his friends thought he was. NaruHina. AU.
1. The Usual

A/N: I realise that starting another new multi-chaptered story is probably a mistake, especially given my irregular updates. But this idea just came to mind recently and wouldn't leave me alone. When my holidays rolled around, I felt compelled to write it. I don't really plan on dragging on it for too long though, so hopefully it won't be too much of a burden.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this. It's kind of a modern day AU take on the series.

Summary: Because Uzumaki Naruto wasn't as clueless as his friends thought he was.

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Secret Lovers

Chapter 1: The Usual

Nothing seemed particularly out of the ordinary today; at least not to one Haruno Sakura.

They all arrived at their usual hangout, the cafe, at the same place, and the same time. Just like any other day.

The young woman shot Sasuke a number of suggestive and lingering gazes as she spoke, the majority of which were seemingly ignored by the young man brooding quietly in the corner. Shikamaru scowled in frustration across from Ino as she spoke with Sakura animatedly. The young genius was chastised by his blonde childhood friend, as he grumbled lowly about how bothersome the situation was, and how he'd rather be napping or watching the clouds right now. Across from his best friend, Chouji munched contentedly away at a packet of Barbeque chips. While at the entrance, Kiba could be heard arguing furiously with the manager as his canine companion, Akamaru, was once again, denied access to the cafe. Shino stood across from the brunette in silence, his face obscured by the hood of his jacket and the sunglasses he always insisted on wearing, even when he was indoors.

And, like always, the much older, more mature and confident, Hinata was reduced to a stuttering, blushing wreck at the mere presence of a certain exuberant blonde male. Who, just like he would on any other day, remained completely oblivious to the obvious, admiration the young woman showed him.

Sakura sighed in frustration, her hand massaging tenderly at her forehead as observed the pitiful exchange between the two. They really were a lost cause.

In spite of how friendly and talkative Naruto was, he really was incredibly socially challenged, and seemed to have a lot of difficulty reading people. Well, she assumed so at least, as he appeared to have missed basically all of the hints that had been dropped by accidentally-on-purpose by her the rest of their friends about the shy girl's feelings.

She supposed she couldn't blame him, though. He'd grown up an orphan, and was ostracised by most of those around him for as long as he could remember. He'd never really had friends or any kind of genuine, intimate bond until he was well into his adolescence, and those were relationships he'd had to fight tooth and nail to gain. How could he possibly recognise love when he'd spent such an integral part of his life largely without it?

Hinata, on the other hand, seemed to lack even the smallest fibre of self-esteem and confidence around her crush. Sakura, for the life of her, could never really understand why. Hinata was gorgeous! Small, lean and petite, yet full figured and womanly. She was a kind, gracious and intelligent individual, one of the few and first people who'd been able to look beyond the wayward delinquent Naruto had once been, and to witness and embrace him for who he was. She had grown and matured so much over the years, yet all that development in her confidence was rendered useless beneath that familiar, mischievious cerulean gaze. Naruto would be lucky to be with someone like her.

If only he could see it.

There was no doubt in her mind that Naruto valued Hinata dearly as a friend, but that was it.

There was no chemistry, no spark between them, absolutely nothing.

In all the years she had known him, Naruto had not shown even the slightest sign of attraction towards her. Verbal, or... Otherwise.

As much as it pained her to admit it, they were friends and nothing more. If history was any indication, that would be all they would remain.

"Seriously Hinata, are you sure you're okay? You're face is really red!" She suddenly heard Naruto exclaim, concern evident in his voice. Snapped from her reverie by the loud, intrusive voice, Sakura's attention was then drawn to the sight of Naruto, delicately brushing Hinata's bangs away from her forehead and placing his hand gently against it. The poor girl could only stammer uncontrollable in response.

Kiba, who had finally given up arguing and agreed to leave Akamaru outside, took a seat across from Sakura. He shot her a look of disbelief upon noticing the typical scene before them, unable to comprehend how one person could be so dense.

_'I know,' _she mouthed back in response.

"You do feel kind of warm," Naruto spoke, completely unaware of his friend's disparagement of him. Hinata squirmed uncomfortably at the man's ministrations, apparently struggling to remain conscious. "Why don't you go to the restroom? Maybe some water will help cool you down."

"O-okay, Naruto-kun." Her barely audible voice trembled, as a warm, calloused hand surrounded her own and tenderly pulled her to her feet.

"Alright you guys, I'll be back in a minute," Naruto stated to the rest of the group, his eyes never leaving the young woman in front of him.

Naruto's only acknowledgement was collective grunt of apathy from the group, who were otherwise ensconced in their own conversation to notice.

Out of the corner of her eye, however, Sakura could've sworn she noticed something unusual about Naruto's demeanor. His eyes to hold a mischievious air, as he led Hinata to the restroom, a look not unlike the one he would get when he was scheming. Sakura wrinkled her nose in confusion. Could Naruto and Hinata have both been in on something they weren't aware of? One of Naruto's pranks, maybe?

No, that didn't seem likely. While the two bonded that would be far too out of the ordinary. Hinata didn't seem like the type to waste her time on immature jokes like Naruto's. She was a Hyuuga and had been raised much better than that.

"Sakura, are you even listening?" Ino spoke suddenly, snapping the young woman back into attention.

"Oh, sorry Ino," she apologised to her friend "I was miles away."

.

They didn't have a lot of time.

Sure, it wasn't exactly the most intimate of settings, but the two rarely had a moment alone together, and every second they could harness was crucial.

Normally, under different circumstances, Hinata might have considered the gravity of their current situation and stopped. After all, they were currently standing in the middle of a public bathroom, one that anyone could really walk into at any moment, maybe even one of their friends! However, the fervent caress of Naruto's soft, warm lips against her neck was more than enough to distract her, as she bit her lip to muffle the moan that was threatening to erupt from the back of her throat.

It wasn't long before she found herself backed up against the bathroom wall, as the weight of his bare chest pressed firmly against her own, and his strong, tanned arms surrounded her.

In that moment, as far as they were concerned, right here and right now was the only option.

They had decided to keep their relationship secret, for a number of reasons. The main one being, if word got out to Hinata's father, Hiashi, he would kill Naruto. Several other men had already suffered similarly horrendous fates for even looking at the stoic man's precious daughter in the wrong way.

Her cousin, Neji, on the other hand, was fortunately, less of a problem. He was Naruto's friend. Naruto had earned the older man's respect, and even offered him a much more free, optimistic outlook on life. If he were to find out about their relationship, he would at least give the blonde a five minute head start.

They were both very socially awkward people, in completely different ways. But when they were together, there was something about it that just seemed... special. They found comfort in one other. Hinata found a great sense of confidence and strength in this man, who continued to battle on through his life in spite of the many adversities he had faced. While Naruto felt as though he could open up to her and reveal the doubts and insecurities he felt about himself, allowing for once, his normally upbeat facade to crumple away.

"Hinata-chan." he groaned, his voice a low, deep rumble against the skin of her collarbone, as his lips descended further down the pale column of her neck, sensually. His teeth gnawed hungrily at the zipper of her jacket, fighting to expose more of her luscious, smooth skin, as his hands... Oh god, his skilled, talented hands, explored every nook and cravess of her lower body, gripping at her shapely hips, running teasingly over her curvaceous backside. She could feel her knees growing weak as she melted in his arms.

"Na-Naruto-kun," she could only whimper in response, leaning further back to allow the man more access.

The mind-numbingly pleasurable torture ceased however, at the sudden and very much intrusive rapping of knuckles against the wooden door pf the restroom. Naruto's eyes widened notably and his hands stilled, as his neck turned in the direction the sound had come from.

"Oi dobe, are you in here?"

"Shit, it's Sasuke," Naruto cursed under his breath, turning back to glance at the woman in his arms. "What are we supposed to do?" He panicked, his voice a low, desperate hiss.

Hinata, her hair unkempt, eyes still hazy with desire and clothes only half covering her body, could only shrug in response.

"Yeah, I am. Just give me a minute, teme." Naruto answered, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible.

"You should hide," Naruto decided, after a pausing for a moment. "After all, this is the men's room... And he knows I'm here now anyway, so I'm going to have to open the door."

Naruto certainly could harness a significant amount of initiative and decisiveness when the appropriate situation arose.

"You just wait and hide in the stall until he's gone," he instructed after examining the room for an appropriate hiding place. The stall was the best option.

He hastily scrambled for the door handle and pulled it open clumsily. Leading Hinata inside, he lowered the toilet lid, before allowing her to sit down upon it.

"Keep your feet up." He instructed simply.

"What if he needs to use it?"

"Trust me, he won't." Naruto answered, his lips suddenly lifting into a mischievous grin "You didn't hear this from me, but Sasuke's always been a bit reluctant about using public restrooms. He never goes in one if he can avoid it."

"Okay," Hinata responded, biting her lip nervously, slipping her shirt back over her head. At her obvious hesitance, her face was framed reassuringly by a pair of callous yet gentle hands.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure everything works out." Naruto spoked reassuringly, the penetrating gaze of his deep blue orbs calming against her own lavender irises.

A soft blush dusted Hinata's features, as his lips brushed softly against her forehead in a short, chaste caress. Naruto then released her and  
, heading to the restroom door as his friend's impatient knocks grew louder.

"Finally! What the hell were you doing in there?"

"Oh you know, the usual." Naruto responded sarcastically. "Catching up on the news, checking my email; what the fuck do you think I was doing?"

"Whatever, dobe. Sakura's already left, she wanted me to tell you she said goodbye."

"Oh, did she? That was nice of her."

A palpable silence lingered between the two, broken only by the sporadic dripping of a tap. Hinata heard Sasuke sigh through a low, frustrated breath before speaking once more.

"How long are things going to stay awkward with you guys? I resent having to play messenger boy for you two. You broke up months ago!"

"I know, it's just... It kind of ended on bad terms."

Hinata knew Naruto was likely kneading at the back of his neck as he spoke. It was a typical gesture of his, one often elicited by uncomfortable situations.

"Bad how, exactly? You're still friends aren't you?"

"Look, I had my chance already and things didn't work out, that's all there is to it."

"You broke up with her."

"Yeah, I didn't really want to though... At least, not at the time, anyway. Sure, I'm over it now, but I did it because I knew she was interested in you."

"Tch," Sasuke sneered "Funny that you were able to pick up on that."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, nothing at all."

"Anyway, you better get going. Don't you have work?"

"Yeah, I know. Thanks mom."

The hollow echo of footsteps against the tiled floor. The resonant shudder of the closing restroom door. A sigh. The tap was still dripping.

"Okay Hinata," Naruto began "You can come out now."

The woman in question opened the door slowly, hesistantly before stepping out to him. Gone was Naruto's typical cheery demeanour. Instead his expression appeared almost unreadable, his lips pursed in a fine line. His normally unruly mop of hair somehow appeared even messier than usual. She could just picture the young man clawing at in frustration as he spoke to Sasuke.

"What were-," Hinata began, before biting her lip apprehensively. She shouldn't bring it up. It wasn't her place to her ask. Naruto however, squeezed her hands with his on softly, encouraging her to continue. "What were you and Sasuke-san talking about?" Hinata managed eventually.

There it was again. His hand massaging tenderly at that exact same point at the back of his neck.

Either this was an awkward subject for the blond to discuss, or he was in dire need of a chiropractor.

"Look, don't worry about what he was saying... I mean, it was months ago."

Hinata felt herself gnawing unconsciously at her lip once more, as he spoke; uncertain about how to comprehend the situation she was facing. Naruto had apparently ended his relationship with Sakura, in spite of the feelings he harboured for her, because he felt she only had eyes for his best friend. This was just a few weeks before the she and Naruto had started... being intimate with one another. Hinata flushed at the thought. Afterall, it was still a notion she was struggling to wrap her head around.

She loved being with Naruto, she really did. Her heart had longed to have an intimate, significant connection like this with him for as long as she could remember, and now that she had attained it, she was simply ecstatic. However, she didn't know how she would feel if what had been some of the most overwhelming, joyous few weeks of her life were sullied by the discovery that she was simply a rebound and Naruto still pined hopelessly for Sakura.

She had been meaning to ask the blond what exactly he was doing with her, and what this meant to him, but an appropriate time had never come up. Whenever they were together like _this _it was generally a swift, frenzied affair, due to the two having to harness any window of oppurtunity they could. However, she couldn't exactly bring it up while they were around friends for fear of being caught out.

"Anyway, I really do need to leave for work." Naruto spoke, his eyes flickering to his watch. A convenient alibi.

"O-Okay, Naruto-kun." She responded, unable to hide the slight tremor in her voice.

"I'll see you later, Hinata-chan." He said, after moving to place another chaste kiss upon her lips.

"Goodbye, Naruto-kun."

She still wasn't entirely convinced.

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A/N: As I'm sure you've guessed, yes, the title is a reference to the video game Naruto: Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 2. ;) Anyway, what do you guys think? Worth continuing?


	2. The Slip-Up

A/N: No, I'm not dead; I've just been A.W.O.L. for the better part of six months or so. I'm really sorry about the wait, guys. Last year was just pretty hectic for me, what with going through a number of family issues, as well as having to move from the city and defer from University on top of that. Let's just say I haven't been able to update anywhere near as much as I would have liked to. Even with the time off from Uni, I'm still pretty busy working most days so I can save up money to live in the city again next year and finish my studies.

But, I digress... Things have been looking a lot better for me recently, and I've been able to get back into writing to relieve some of the stress in my life. I was really excited about finally getting this chapter completed as well, considering how well received this story has been so far. Thank you guys so much for the overwhelming amount of alerts, favourites and reviews you have given me! They are most appreciated and have definitely motivated me to carry on. :D

I also thought I should address a recurring concern I've noticed in a number of the reviews I received, and say that this story is definitely NaruHina. I have no intention of making Hinata a rebound girl for Naruto. Any reference I may have made to that idea in the last chapter was just me trying to convey some insecurities Hinata holds about their relationship... Which I'm sure Naruto will do his best to dispel later. ;) So, yeah, don't worry about this story suddenly ending up as NaruSaku, because that is not my aim for it at all.

Anyway, I hope my absence didn't cause any of you to lose interest. Here is the (long overdue) second chapter. This has not been edited, so apologies in advance for any glaring errors.

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Secret Lovers

Chapter 2: The Slip-Up

Naruto perched low, his body remaining crouched as close to the ground as possible. He furrowed his brows deeply, as his ears strained to pick up on any suspicious sounds resonating from the other side of the wall. He had to act carefully. It wasn't just his own well-being at stake here, and timing their exit accurately was crucial. One wrong move and their cover would be blown, their otherwise full proof falling completely apart.

Fortunately for them, everything seemed to be clear. He couldn't pick up the sound of footsteps approaching, and the voices that carried from further away seemed too distant to pose any immediate threat. Concluding it safe to move on, Naruto drew back slowly.

"Alright, I think we can go now," he spoke in a low register, as he turned to his companion. "But just to be safe, you head out first and I'll cover you... I'll stay back for a before following after you. It'll look less suspicious than if we both go out together."

A delicate hand reached upon to cover, soft, pliable lips, attempting to smother the giggle that escaped from them, despite Hinata's best efforts. She couldn't help it. The stern expression and tone of voice he currently bore were so unlike his ordinary nature, she couldn't help but find humour in the contrast. Not to mention the, she assumed, mock seriousness with which Naruto was approaching their situation. It was if they were about to undertake some kind of life threatening mission and he was providing her with an in-depth plan of attack. At the infectious sight and sound of her melodic laughter, Naruto could feel his own lips twitch into a grin.

"Okay, Naruto-kun," Hinata answered eventually, as she regained her composure. Her tone now holding the same gravity his had earlier, as she played along. "I'll be careful."

Her hand reached out gently, hesitantly, to grace a tanned, whiskered cheek momentarily. He welcomed the touch gratefully, his eyes slowly dropping closed as he leaned into her tender caress. Hinata was still somewhat apprehensive when it came to acts of affection. However, she was gradually become more comfortable and confident at taking the initiative, which please Naruto immensely. He sighed contentedly, only breaking the contact of her digits to to brush his lips fervently over her still exposed collarbone. The affection was returned, as her lithe arms surrounded his form earnestly, her mouth searching his own.

It was obvious that either of them were particularly happy about having to leave each other; it was exactly why they were still exchanging lingering caresses, dragging out their parting ministrations, for as long as possible. However, they were left with little other choice.

They had been in the bathroom together for far longer than what could be deemed a reasonable amount of time, and had almost been caught by Naruto's best friend in the process. They really needed to leave soon before any of their remaining friends outside got suspicious.

The couple cherished each moment they could spend together deeply, no matter how fleeting, and knew that another opportunity to be alone would present itself soon enough. They just hoped they had been able to quell each other's desires long enough to last through that void. For, when they left this room, they would have to hide behind a facade. Outside, and under the watchful of eye of their friends, they couldn't exchange loving caresses like this. They couldn't kiss, or hold-hands, or even remain completely at ease and comfortable in each other's presence, as, as far as they were concerned, there was nothing going on between them. Hinata lacked self-confidence, and became little more than a nervous, apprehensive wreck at the mere sight of Naruto; who was completely oblivious to her obvious affection. Those were the roles they had perfected for themselves. That was what everyone believed, and that was how they wanted it to remain. For now, at least, anyway.

Things just worked out much simpler that way.

"I guess I'll see you later." Hinata whispered after awhile, her warm breath dusting over his ear, before she slowly pulled away. She couldn't help but shudder beneath the sudden lack of warmth emanated from his body, and the ache that clenched at her heart when they finally separated. Noticing her apparently troubled disposition, the blond offered up his hand in reassurance.

"Yeah. Whenever you're next feeling a little under the weather," He responded with a flash of teeth, his bright eyes twinkling mischievously as they remained fixated upon her own.

Hinata laughed sincerely once more at the man's behaviour. It was just so... Naruto. Maintaining his usual upbeat, optimistic demeanour, even when he was probably feeling just as upset as she. He disregarded his own well-being to try and reassure her; to, at least, appear strong for the both of them. She was still amazed by how easily Naruto had been able to adapt to reading; in spite of being practically incapable of doing so for many years past.

Rising to her feet, Hinata looked over shoulder and offered Naruto one last reticent smile, before she left. Leaving intimate, warm spaces of his arms, and returning to noise and flurry of the packed cafe. Returning to the self-conscious, frail shell she thought she had abandoned for good several years ago.

'Later' couldn't come soon enough, as far as she was concerned.

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"I still don't understand why they don't allow dogs in there. Akamaru's smarter and better behaved than most of the people in that place!"

"Not everyone operates in the same way as your family, Kiba. I'm sure they don't share their beds with animals, for one."

"What? Akamaru gets cold at night sometimes. Don't you, boy?"

The dog barked happily in response, his tongue drooping lazily out of his mouth. The canine's deep, content pants carried on as his two legged companion scratched lightly against the top of his head. Hinata smiled at the casual and familiar exchange of banter between the two young men walking across from her. Kiba and Shino were two of her oldest, closest friends. They had been in the same class together since their freshman year of high school with their teacher, Kurenai Yuhi, and the relationship had been solidified with time. Over the years, Kurenai had also become something of a mentor to the trio, Hinata in particular.

However, in spite of their intimate relationship, not even they were aware of the full extent of her and Naruto's relationship. No one did. Not any of their friends, not her sister or her cousin, and certainly not her father. She hadn't mentioned anything to Kurenai-sensei either. However, Hinata suspected the older woman had a feeling there was something more to her relationship with the man who had captured her heart so effortlessly, all those years ago.

"So Hinata, what was going on with you and Naruto earlier, eh?"

Hinata felt a lump abruptly form in the pit of her throat and her heart lurched uncomfortably. Regressing to old habits, her face flushed slightly as she panicked at the implications of Kiba's lewd comment. Could he actually suspect that something was going on between them, or was he just teasing her like normal? After all, it was no question that Shino and Kiba were both well aware of Hinata's feelings for the blond. Kiba in particular. As he, like several of their other friends, had made a habit out of attempting to coerce Hinata in the making a move on the blonde. He was even known to tease Naruto whenever he was in her presence, accusing the man of showing off for her.

It suddenly struck Hinata that she had been lost in her own thoughts and her friend's query had been met by nothing more than silence for several moments. Fortunately for her, blushing and being rendered almost inarticulate was generally considered a typical response for Hinata as far as mentioning her relationship with a certain blond male. For once, she relished her meek, withdrawn personality. Consequently, Kiba had no real reason to suspect anything with a brief and soft sigh of relief. He was smirking at reaction, in fact, debunking her initial suspicion that his statement was made for anything other than his own mere amusement.

"Ah, nothing Kiba-kun," Hinata replied eventually. "He just thought I wasn't feeling well. That's all."

"Figures," Kiba scoffed, scratching at his shaggy hair in a manner uncannily similar to that of his canine companion. "I guess I forgot who we're talking about here. Naruto's far too dense to figure out what's actually going on with you."

The irony of Kiba's statement was not lost on Hinata.

"H-he's not that bad," She defended, though her words lacked any real conviction.

"Oh, please," Kiba carried on, unphased by her protests. "He's completely clueless! I know it might be difficult for you, Hinata, but you really need to

Hinata gaze returned to the path ahead of her, as she made no real effort to pay attention to what Kiba was saying. This wasn't the first time she had had a conversation like this with him and she was all too familiar with the formula. He would disparage Naruto's social skills (or lack thereof) and she would vainly defend him only to be encouraged to establish what Naruto had failed to. As a matter of fact, she'd been through it with all of her friends; save for Shikamaru, Shino and Sasuke, all of whom appeared to remain rather apathetic to the entire situation. The process was becoming increasingly frustrating to have to endure though, considering she was already several steps ahead of her friends.

There had been several instances in which Hinata had come close to completely giving up and just revealing their secret, in the hope that maybe then she wouldn't have to worry about people pestering her over Naruto. However, she remained strong. She knew that there was no way she could do that, not after the two had agreed to keep their relationship private, and especially not for her only selfish gains.

It was why, she'd been deliberately reverting to some old habits of hers; the hot flushes, the stuttering, the occasional fainting spell, all at the prospect of intimacy with Naruto; when in actual fact her relationship with him had developed much further than any of them could have ever possibly imagined.

They were falling right into their hands.

It was then that Hinata realised Kiba was still speaking, and even though she was no longer actively participating in the conversation. In fact it was Shino, who, in a rare act of social interaction, appeared to have substituted for her.

"That analogy doesn't really work, Kiba. I think you'll find that a relationship between two dogs is quite different to that of two humans..."

Maybe it was best that she hadn't been listening.

* * *

"Oi, Ero-sennin! I'm back!" Naruto called, the front door to their apartment swinging wildly open as he stepped inside.

"Keep it down, brat! Don't distract me. I'm really on a role here!"

Naruto rolled his eyes at his godfather before retrieving his keys from the door and closing it firmly. The Great Jiraiya was currently slouched over the kitchen table surrounded by a rapidly growing pile of crumpled papers, as he scribbled furiously at a notepad. It was apparent that he hadn't moved all day, given that that was more or less the exact same position that Naruto had seen in him when he had left that same morning. He rarely ventured out of the house to conduct 'research' anymore, especially after what had happened the last time Tsunade-baa-chan had caught him.

He was no doubt working on his latest novel, judging by the small trickle of blood seeping its way down from the older man's nostril. Jiraiya was an acclaimed author, namely for his series 'Icha Icha Paradise'. His godson, for the life of him, appeared to be one of the few who could not work out why that was the case. From what he'd read of the stories, the plots weren't particularly inspired, the characters relatively one dimensional and the writing itself was average at best. It was really just soft-core pornography in a thinly veiled disguise, and really, there were only so many euphemisms for genitalia. That was the key demographic though, he supposed; sexually inactive, older men looking for some form of outlet.

Naruto preferred the man's older works, personally. One novel in particular he was fond of was entitled The Gutsy Ninja, and a personal favourite of his parents, he had been told. In spite of its poor sales, it held great sentimental value for Naruto and the old, worn paperback still rested upon the nightstand in his bedroom.

Naruto peeled off his jacket and set down his keys, before making his way towards his own room, fully intent on leaving his guardian alone to his outlandish plots and unusual metaphors. He was interrupted however, by the abrupt and harsh scrapping of a chair against the wooden floor as it was pushed back and Jiraiya rose to his feet.

"Oh, but before I forget, Naruto," the man spoke, his voice suddenly holding a teasing tone. Naruto paused, already feeling apprehensive about where exactly this conversation was going.

"A young woman stopped by earlier while you were at work," he continued. With his back turned, Naruto couldn't actually make out the man's expression, but he was smirking perversely and wiggling his eyebrows suggestively in a manner typical of him. "Quite a cute one too. A friend of yours?"

'Damn pervert.' Naruto thought, feeling a vein popping out on his forehead, as a frustrated breath escaped his lips. "That depends. Did they say who they were?"

"No, actually, they didn't." The older man responded, a hand stroking his chin in contemplation. "But... It must've been Yamanaka's kid; she was saying something about wondering if you could help her out at a flower shop..."

Naruto sighed inwardly, that was definitely Ino. Recently she'd been frequently inviting him over to her place, or out somewhere else under the most incredibly, flimsy pretenses. They typically served as nothing more than a front for her to try and play Cupid to Hinata and himself. She would often invite other friends of theirs, so as not to rise suspicion. However, Naruto saw through when they would unexpectedly remember they had other commitments, or needed to get home early, conveniently leaving Naruto and Hinata alone together. Considering the two weren't exactly brilliant friends; they got on well, but didn't exactly spend time together one-on-one; he assumed that this was the case, once again.

Naruto supposed he couldn't really blame his friends, in a way. In retrospect, he was aware of how incredibly blind his younger self had been to Hinata's feelings. The flushes, her stuttering and stumbling, her nervous gestures, the fainting... He couldn't believe he had overlooked it for so long. However, after years of teasing, frustrated sighs and somewhat demeaning hints at the hands of his friends, Naruto now derived an odd form of pleasure from in knowing that the situation was now reversed. He was more than aware of Hinata's fondness for him and had acted decisively upon it, establishing a romantic relationship with her, hoping to make up for all the years that he had missed the signs. It was his friends who were in the dark now.

At least, he supposed it was a romantic relationship. He didn't really have a lot of prior experience to compare it to. Sure, he and Hinata hadn't officially been on an actual date, in any sense, but that was only for fear of being caught out. Even if they managed to avoid their friends, they were almost certain that someone would spot the head of the Hyuuga family's daughter out in public with that 'Uzumaki delinquent'. His only other knowledge of dating came from his time from Sakura and well... That hadn't exactly gone the way he would have liked at the time. He had relentlessly harboured for her attention for years, and in the process, became blind to any that was actually directed his way by another. When Sakura finally relented and agreed to go on a date with him, the experience had been incredibly different to what he had initially expected.

No matter how good of a time they had together, Naruto was always felt that Sakura's affection was half-hearted, as if she didn't share the same feelings as he. Her smiles didn't seemed somewhat forced, never really reaching her eyes. Naruto also noticed that had one consumed him so fiercely didn't appear to be as strong as he recalled them. His younger self had dreamed out this scenario for as long as he could remember and would probably be overjoyed to learn that several years down the line it was actually brought to fruition. However, as the two had grown older and inevitably changed, the crush for her he had once held so deeply had diminished somewhat. Not to mention, the brief time they spent together couldn't possibly live up to expectations brought about by Naruto's ludicrous fantasy.

In the end, he felt as though she was merely looking out for his well-being, and had only agreed to date him so that he wouldn't be hurt by her rejection. He could tell though, that her heart really longed for someone else, and he had an inkling suspicion he knew who... He had ended their relationship not too long after, stating that he didn't like to she lie to herself. In spite of the separation, they remained amicable to one another and continued to share the very close, intimate relationship they had always had. He treasured his friendship with Sakura and was pleased to learn that it hadn't been damaged as a result of their time together. There just hadn't been any sincere romantic feelings between them... Not like with he and Hinata.

It was a notion that he found almost... disconcerting. He had struggled his entire life to forge meaningful relationships with those around him. His friendships with Sasuke, and Sakura, among others, had not come easily. He'd had to debunk a number of rather unflattering rumours and reputations that existed. He'd had a troubled childhood without parents or proper guidance, and spent most of his pre-adolescent years alone before finally been taking into the care of his guardian. Desperately trying to attain some kind of acknowledgement in his younger years, Naruto acted irresponsibly; vandalizing, playing pranks, possessing little manners and speaking to others disrespectfully. Because of his abhorrent behaviour, most children his age avoided him under the instructions of their parents. It was a few years before he met anyone he felt he could genuinely call his friend.

Yet, throughout it all, Hinata had admired his perseverance in the face of adversity, wishing she too could possess the same traits. In later years, as she grew more confident, and they eventually became friends, she offered him her affection and admiration without question doubt. She had taken him for who he was, for all his flaws and weaknesses, and seen the strength he exuded in spite of them. There was something oddly comforting in that knowledge, something that he had never been able to completely wrap his head around.

Naruto often wondered if maybe this was something he might be to talk to his Godfather about. After all, he had seen the man flirting with a large number of women in his time. Maybe he wouldn't exactly be in a position to offer any advice about relationships, but the experience would have surely provided the man with an idea of how a woman might think in behave in a particular situation. His novels did include female characters, after all. Several of them.

Then again, Naruto had never actually read any of Jiraiya's books beyond his first, so he didn't real know for sure. He didn't, however, exactly know many females who were found of Jiraiya's works. Considering that, he couldn't really imagine the heroines; if you could call them that; as being portrayed as memorable characters or having important roles.

His train of thought was halted by a rather obnoxious declaration.

"Man, I never realised Inoichi's daughter had grown up to be such a looker. Blonde, curvy, legs that go on for-"

The rest of the older man's statement was promptly interrupted by an airborne book colliding firmly with the square of his jaw.

"Stop ogling over my friends, you sick freak! She's less than half your age!"

The statement was punctuated by the emphatic slamming of the blond's bedroom door.

'Yep, he's definitely not the person you want to go to for advice about women,' Naruto concluded with a sigh. That didn't really leave him with many other options. The idea of asking Tsunade-baa-chan or Shizune-san didn't really appeal to him. He couldn't exactly bring it up with Ino or Sakura either. They were among some of the people he and Hinata were trying to avoid having find out. Not too mention he couldn't imagine it was a conversation he wouldn't exactly be comfortable having with either of them, for different reasons.

It was times like this Naruto couldn't help but curse the significant lack of feminine influence he'd had in the early stages of his life.

Fishing his hand into his pocket, Naruto retrieved his phone, which he had turned off while at work. Switching it on, Naruto's attention was drawn to a message flashing on the screen, alerting him of a new voice-mail. Perhaps it was from Ino? Initially, Naruto had brushed off her visit earlier today as insignificant; probably something they could just talk about later. However, if she was this desperate to get in contact with him, maybe something was up after all. With a shrug, Naruto decided to satisfy his curiosity and opened the message, pulling the phone up to his ear.

"Hey Naruto, it's Ino. Listen, I was wondering if you could do me a favour..."

She trailed off, not immediately finishing the thought and Naruto hesitated. It must have been something pretty major if she was having this much difficulty asking him. A small, simple favour wouldn't have warranted this much of a build-up.

"You see, we've got a bunch of new stock coming in for the shop on the weekend, but my parents are going to be out... I was going to ask some of the gang around to give me a hand with unloading it. Shikamaru and Chouji will be there to help out, obviously. Oh, and Hinata as well."

The teasing lilt her voice adopted upon revealing that last tidbit of information didn't go unnoticed by Naruto. His suspicions hadn't been entirely correct. He considered hanging up the phone then and there, but he listened on, purely for curiosity's sake.

"Most of the others are busy though, and couldn't help... But you will, right?! Please, Naruto. I'm desperate here! I will totally owe you one... Anyway, just think about it, okay? Call me back..."

Naruto sighed, setting his phone down and massaging his temple as he slumped back against his bed. He starred vacantly at the ceiling above him, the fading twilight draping patterns across the bare decor, as he considered Ino's request. His weekend was free, there was no denying that, and; despite his suspicion of her having an ulterior motive; he couldn't help but feel as though Ino was genuinely needed his help. He released another breath, running a free hand through the unruly fringe of hair falling over his brow. He'd never been one to turn down his friends, not when he was capable of helping them out.

He stifled a yawn, glancing over at the clock beside his bed. He hadn't realised how late it was. Business had been booming at Ichiraku Ramen's lately and Naruto was pleased at the propsect of his favourite spot in the city having so much success; even if it meant he had stay back well after his shift had ended to help with cleaning up. It was worth every minute of labour to witness a place he loved thriving.

Grasping at the sheets crumpled at the fight of the bed, Naruto promptly stripped down to his boxers and switched the light off, before nestling beneath the soft, cotton confines. He'd get back to Ino about her request tomorrow.

* * *

Naruto sighed, cursing for the umpteenth time the fact that he had ever let his interest in plants slip to Ino, of all people. Ino: the daughter of the Yamanaka Flower Shop owners. Ino: the woman adamant about involving herself in any aspects of his life where her assistance was definitely not wanted, i.e. his relationship with Hinata. Ino: the reason why he was currently spending Saturday, his day off, helping her out.

What had he been thinking?!

His pant legs were stained with soil, his back ached, his feet and fingers were showing signs of blistering. Not to mention the consistent, close proximity of Hinata was slowly driving him, and his libido, mad. Why the hell had he agreed to this again? For some reason, this hasn't seemed like such a bad idea to him yesterday.

She was standing within arms reach of him, dressed in a worn tank top and light shorts. It was perfectly appropriate attire given the warm weather, and their task at hand. Yet, even while they weren't particularly revealing, it still made for a stark difference to her typical, baggier clothing, and the sight alone had been more than enough to distract Naruto when they began that morning. Now, a light sheen of sweat coated seemingly every inch of her exposed skin, as if it wasn't obvious enough to him already and needed to blatantly showcased.

Her flowing ebony tresses were tied back loosely, a few stubborn strands still spilling haphazardly over her shoulders, as she worked diligently. Naruto had never felt more tempted to run his hands through them than he did in the exact moment. Naruto raked a hand at his face in exasperation, happy for the momentary distraction from the vision a few feet away from him. Ino misinterpreted this as frustration over the laboriousness of his current task.

"Oh come on, Naruto, it can't be that bad!" She chimed playfully, his exasperation apparently just as palpable as he thought. Naruto scoffed dismissively, sometimes Ino was too cheery for her own good, and coming from someone as upbeat and overly enthusiastic as him, that certainly was saying something.

Shikamaru was sprawled lazily in the corner, his eyes focused out of the open window beside him and onto the soft billows of cloud decorating the sky. His right hand loosely grasped a trowel, as if to allude to a sense of productively, despite his currently immobile state. Shikamaru's eyes fluttered open and closed occasionally, as if growing heavy; the young man appearing rather eager to engage in a mid-morning nap. Ino, knowing her friend all too well, didn't even need to look up from the list she was checking, to know that he was slacking off. She had already suspected that would be the cause from the moment they had started, already having years of experience dealing with his indifferent nature under her belt.

"Oi, Shikamaru! Wake up!"

"No thanks." He replied gruffly. In spite of the wince that overcome his features when her foot connected with his shin, his eyes remained closed and his voice impassive.

"I mean it, Shika," Ino continued to scold, her hands pressed at her hips. "It's not fair that we do all the work while you just lounge around."

"Troublesome," Shikamaru replied, before begrudgingly sitting up and returning to help the others.

Shikamaru and Chouji were never far from Ino; it had been that way for as long as Naruto could recall. Their family histories were all practically entwined. They had known each other since they were newborns, their fathers all having been friends since childhood. It explained the way they acted around each other; seemingly always bickering, yet remaining fiercely loyal to and caring of one another. It was like they really were siblings.

Consequently, Ino's two male friends were often roped into helping her 'schemes' along; this was one included. Chouji agreed simply because he was a kind-hearted individual who cherished his two best, and oldest friends, deeply; one of whom Ino was. Though, the offer to go out for Korean BBQ afterwards certainly didn't hinder the chances of him turning up.

Shikamaru, on the other hand, knew better than to try argue with Ino. Any form of protest would undoubtedly elicit a tirade of nonsensical shrieking from his childhood friend; something that, at any cost, he would avoid having to endure. In considering this, Shikamaru had begrudgingly cleared his busy schedule of cloud watching and taking a nap, in favour of maintaining the use of his eardrums. This also provided him with an opportunity to potentially avoid receiving the same treatment from his mother, something Shikamaru was always in favour of.

"You're having fun at least, aren't you, Hinata?" Ino all but begged, her eyes pleading miserably as a pout crossed her lips.

"Hai, Ino-san." The woman in question replied, giggling softly at her friend's melodramatic behaviour. Naruto furrowed his eyebrows in suspicion, unsure as to how anyone could possibly derive pleasure from the mundane procedure that had been abruptly thrust upon them. Hinata certainly had a great deal of patience... Either that or she was just humouring Ino.

In spite of himself, Naruto couldn't help but find Hinata's sunny disposition infectious, and a smile tugged at his own lips. Perhaps it wasn't as bad as he was making it out to be after all. It certainly wasn't as bad as Shikamaru was making it out to be. For once, he was more than willing to help Ino out as it seemed that really had no ulterior motives and had generally needed the help of her friends. So, Hinata just so happened to be there, that didn't necessarily mean anything. Hinata was a sweet girl and certainly wouldn't be the type to turn down a friend either. Naruto decided that he'd just been acting paranoid and cynical as of late. He resolved to try and stop over-analysing every minute detail of his friend's behaviour, as it was all slowly picking him apart. That kind of thinking was better left to people like Shikamaru.

"Actually Hinata, Naruto; there are some boxes of Gardenia seeds out back. Do you think you two could bring them out for me?"

"Yeah, sure thing, Ino."

Unfortunately, he had let his guard slip a little too much.

* * *

It had always been oddly cold in the back area of the Yamanaka Flower Shop, and not just in terms of the temperature.

In the few times that he'd been there; which had been increasing over the past few weeks; Naruto had found it quite uncomfortable, seemingly in a constant state of neglect. Wads of paper, ribbons and boxes were wildly strewn throughout the room in disarray. The piles of order forms and receipts stacked upon the counter alluded there once having been a great deal of human life and activity, however the clutter also suggested a state of disuse, and that any visit was a brief, concise one.

The surroundings were stale, and almost suffocating. The lack of windows offering no fresh air or natural light, the ventilation blasting cold, manufactured air to compensate for the warmer outside temperature, adding to the room's overall cold atmosphere. The dull fluorescent glow of the bulb and bare, worn walls contrasted significantly to the vibrant life and colour of the shop itself. It was difficult to believe that this two completely different environments were separated by a single wall.

On this occasion, however, it seemed that nothing could be further from the truth.

Heat pulsated throughout every fiber his being.

He could almost feel the perspiration building on his forehead, as he desperately clawed at the materials restricting his own body. The fabric of his favourite orange jacket suddenly felt practically intrusive in these conditions, grinding at his skin like sandpaper. Growling lowly as he struggled within the cloth prison, Naruto, in his frenzied struggle, eventually slipped one tanned arm free from the confines. The limb immediately surrounded her waist, pulling her wanton form closer.

Never before had the unrelenting throttle of air against his bare flesh been more inviting.

His muscles throbbed in anticipation, as they were enveloped by the supple, silk skin before him. Her mouth, hot and needy, was captured desperately by his own. She shivered; whether it was underneath his sensuous touch or the chill of the artificial air brushing over her naked flesh, he wasn't sure. His teeth nipped at her swollen lips, hoping to elicit further convulsions from the young woman thereby ruling out the possibility that it had been the latter. At some point amidst their carnal exchange, her hair had come loose, the slightly damp strands now pooling over her shoulders in waves. Naruto could feel thick tufts of the dark mane sticking against his sweaty cheek as his lips descended further down to mold against her heaving chest.

They had honestly tried to just get the Gardenia seeds, like Ino had asked. The last thing they want to do was engage in heavy petting, just a few rooms away from three of their closest friends, running the risk of unveiling the most intimate details of the relationship in the flesh. Unfortunately, they both only possessed so much willpower. A small part of his subconscious nagged at the back of Naruto's mind, alerting him to how dangerous the idea was. However, any warnings fell promptly on deaf ears. They hadn't ventured more than a few paces into the smaller room before jumping one another. Little did Ino know, her initially, rather innocent, plan to place the two in close confines was achieving results far beyond her wildest imagination.

His fingers clenched at the material now plastered against her skin, Hinata wrapped her legs around his waist with a needy cry; trying to push their bodies as close together as physically possible. Her lips scattered in ardent grazes across his face, lingering over his shining eyes, the unusual birthmarks that marred both of his cheeks; those unique, unmistakable traits of his, that appealed to her so much. Her own lust-filled orbs flickered open, as his hand fisted clumsily beneath the material of top, fighting between his temptation to continue stroking at her soft, velvety skin, or to completely rip the shirt from her body, revealing it to him entirely.

"Naruto, st-" Hinata protested weakly, her voice broken by mewls. It took her a moment to articulate a coherent sentence beneath the sensuous exploration of his hands.

"I... I think I can hear someone coming."

Naruto too registered the increasing sound of an approaching presence. The sound of familiar voices growing steadily. The words were blurred ad incomprehensible, but the tone was clearly curious, inquisitive. He tried to answer, to offer the person some sort of adequate reaction that would dispel any need they felt to check on the two. However, his voice cracked, barely breaking the sound of his own hand rustling against Hinata's top as he continued, unphased in his quest to pry it from her body.

There had always been something inviting about the risk. Something appealing the mere possibility that they could get caught. It was usually something that fueled the desire of the young couple.

It was at that moment, Naruto had thrown his head back wildly, his mouth slack, and a moan threatening to escape his lips, when he was interrupted. The sound of a door creaking on its hinges and an abrupt, high-pitched shriek gradually drew his attention from the .

"Hey you two, did you manage to the find the- What the hell?!"

Hinata shrieked at the intrusion, mortified. Her arms frantically reaching up to cover her now bare chest, as she buried her flushed face into Naruto's shoulder. Naruto, on the over hand, remained completely frozen, and at loss as to what to do next.

His friend was gawking at him, her eyes wide and hand still frozen in place upon the door handle.

"Heey, Ino." Naruto began, slipping his arm behind the back of his head sheepishly. He gestured to one of the boxes, knocked on its side on the floor and the contents spilled.

"We uh... We found the Gardenias."

* * *

A/N: I promise not to take more than six months to update this time. :P

... Especially after the way I ended this chapter, haha. Anyway, thanks again for your patience; please keep the reviews coming!


	3. The Deal

A/N: Hey guys. So, this update is only the first half of the document I originally wanted to use for Chapter 3. I could've had it all ready and published by today, but I probably wouldn't have been satisfied with how the second hald was written. So, in my eagerness to update this story, I decided to just post this first half of the chapter, and add the rest a separate chapter later. So, on the plus side, you should see another update within the next few days!

Anyway, this update only took me a couple of months. Still not exactly ideal, but about three times faster than last time. Haha. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

Secret Lovers

Chapter 3, Part 1: The Deal

Naruto had barely managed to pry himself from Hinata's petrified grasp before Ino reacted, her voice erupting in an abrupt, piercing shriek. Flinching at the offensive noise, he stumbled; first over the small mound of clothes strewn haphazardly beneath his feet, and then over any futile attempt at offering an explanation that would effectively calm down the hysterical woman.

"Ino, wait- I can explain!"

The man's protests, predictably, fell on deaf ears.

From the other room, the sound of Ino's cry barely stirred any overt, obvious reaction from Shikamaru, who didn't even bother to look up. Instead, he merely sighed, having long since grown accustomed to the his childhood friend's melodramatic tendencies. It probably wasn't anything serious. Dealing with the highly strung woman had become a standard procedure for him, really. His lean fingers kneaded at his temple in exasperation, trying to alleviate the tension already settling there, as he wondered what possibly could have set her off this time. Surely Naruto hadn't knocked over any of the stock in the backroom again? He would know better after the reprimanding he had received the last time.

Chouji, on the other hand, expressed signs of sincere concern. Not surprising, as he was renowned for being renowned for being the most patient of the second generation of Ino-Shika-Chou; except when it came to anyone disparaging his rather 'husky' physique. His brow furrowed in worry, as he exchanged a brief look with Shikamaru. The man in question resisted the overwhelming urge to roll his eyes, before inclining his head slightly in a nod as the two wordlessly agreed to move towards the source of Ino's disturbance.

This silent exchange lasted only a few seconds.

Again; standard procedure, really.

The two rounded the rear corner of the shop, heading for the storage room she had just entered a few moments ago. Shikamaru's hand clenched the door handle carefully, before gradually slipping it open, mentally preparing himself for whatever fiasco that would inevitably present itself on the other side.

In spite of Shikamaru's surprisingly high intellect and deductive ability; a sheer contrast to his laid-back, apathetic attitude; he was taken back. If the almost inconspicuous raise of his brow was any indication, he struggled to find any rational explanation for what could have occurred just moments ago to trigger the scene unfolding before him.

He registered a shirtless Naruto; his pants loose and belt buckle still unfastened; with unruly hair and a series of sharp red discolourations marking his neck and shoulders. He was trailing after a flushed and shrieking Ino, who was currently struggling to form a coherent sentence, while Naruto tried in vain to help her pull herself together. This however, proved difficult, as focus was also drawn to avoiding tripping over the pants still trailing around his ankles. All the while, a flustered, tousled Hinata; who looked to be having difficulty maintaining consciousness in her embarrassment; shielded her prone, crouched, and, most surprisingly, half-naked body with her arms.

Amidst the chaos, not one of the storeroom's occupants registered the presence of Shikamaru and Choji, who both gazed on without a sound and in utter bewilderment.

However, upon noticing the rather uncharacteristic blush covering Ino's features and the, no doubt, uncomfortably constrained bulge within Naruto's briefs that had not yet receded, the pieces clicked carefully into place for Shikamaru. A suspicion he had formed some time again being confirmed.

Chouji however, was not having quite as much success.

"What uh," he ventured apprehensively, finally drawing the attention of the room's other occupants. "What's going on here?"

Hinata shrieked at the sudden intrusion, while Naruto's head lashed rapidly in Chouji's direction, before his foot caught in the seam of his pants and his balance was thrown off-kilter. The man subsequently and unceremoniously splattered against the hard word floor face first.

Shikamaru sighed, Chouji winced sympathetically, Naruto groaned, Hinata glanced over in concern, while Ino continued to run aimlessly, her voice carrying at an almost inhumane register. The shaggy blond head was lifted from the floor with a grimace, his hand rubbing at the raw, red mark now forming across his forehead.

"I'll explain in a minute, can you just help me settle her down?" Naruto responded, gesturing towards Ino. He promptly returned to his feet and managed to hitch his pants around his waist, rebuckling his belt. "I'm going to have enough of a headache as is."

It took them the better part of ten minutes, as well as the combined efforts of Hinata, Naruto and a puzzled Chouji, to bring back to her senses. For the most part. Shikamaru, however, was reluctant to intervene.

"You?! And you!?" Her pointer finger alternated between being thrust at Naruto, Hinata, and then Naruto once more. "I can't believe this!"

"W-we didn't tell anyone because we didn't want to make a big deal out of it." Hinata stumbled, having only just found her voice, following the mortification of being caught.

Ino turned to face Hinata once more with such speed and ferocity she risked giving herself whiplash.

"What are you talking about? It IS a big deal!" Ino's voice rose dramatically. "There's practically a pool going on how long it would be before you two finally hooked up!"

"There's a what?!" Naruto's choked indignantly, looking to Shikamaru for and Chouji for confirmation.

"About that," Chouji chuckled awkwardly.

"I have to tell someone-" Ino started, grappling desperately for her phone. Her finger glided over the keypad rapidly. She managed to type out a few key phrases; no doubt with the intention of sending them to Sakura; before she was halted midway through her task.

"Ino, don't!" Chouji caught her arm firmly, in reprimand.

"But Chouji-" began her protest, only to be interrupted by the low drawl of Shikamaru's voice.

"I may have had my suspicions."

"Huh?"

The collective response. Four heads turned to face the figure leaning lazily against the wall; who had otherwise remained silent throughout the entire ordeal; curious.

"About Hinata and Naruto, I mean," Shikamaru elaborated. "I'd been under the impression that something was actually going on between them for a couple of weeks now."

"Ano, what do you mean Shikamaru-san?" Hinata ventured, somewhat reluctantly.

"Well, you two had been acting rather strange lately," Shikamaru began, turning to face Hinata. "Not to mention you kept spending time alone together under the most flimsy pretense. Like when Naruto asked you if you could help him wish his laundry. I felt you must've been up to something.

"And you didn't think to tell me?!" Ino shrieked at Shikamaru indignantly.

"Of course I didn't, troublesome woman," he muttered. "I felt that considering Hinata and Naruto were going to such an effort to try and keep this a secret, I should respect their wishes. It was none of my business, anyway. Besides, if I'd told you, the entire village would've found out within a week."

Ino gasped in response, a mixture of shock and anger overtaking her features. As much as she hated to admit it, Shikamaru's words did hold some truth to them. If, in any other situation, Ino had found out about the 'progression' in Hinata and Naruto's relationship, she would have been overjoyed and graciously informed anyone within hearing distance, in her excitement. That didn't mean she had to approve of the blunt manner in which he'd made his point, though.

"I'm surprised we lasted as long as we did without being noticed by you, Shikamaru," Naruto joked. The man in question, shrugged apathetically, a cigarette now balanced between his lips as he vigorously ruffled through his pockets in search of a light.

"What about you?!" Ino started again, eventually; only this time turning her attention to Chouji.

"Well," he replied, fidgeting uncomfortably under the woman's accusing gaze. "Shikamaru may have pointed it out to me once or twice, but I kept quiet. I thought he was just reading into things a bit too much and didn't really feel it was my place to say anything, anyway."

Ino gaped at the men across from her, her jaw slackening. She couldn't believe what she was hearing! "You two are supposed to be my oldest friends! Why would you not tell me something like that?" She scolded. "We've known each other since we were children! After all that time don't you trust me at all?"

"On the contrary, Ino," Shikamaru responded curtly, silencing her tirade before it went any further. "I would trust you with my life... Just not when it comes to keeping secrets."

Ino was abruptly stunned into silence once more. She coud feel a flush crawling across her cheeks at Shikamaru's unexpected compliment. Yet a scowl pulled threatingly at her lips as a result of the thinly veiled insult that had accompanied it. Noticing the fuming woman, Naruto opted to try and distract her focus in the hopes of preventing another outburst.

"Ino," he spoke. "Earlier you said you would owe me if I helped you out today. Well, I'd actually like to take you up on that offer now, if it's possible."

"What do you mean?" Ino turned to face Naruto, momentarily breaking the glare she'd aimed in Shikamaru's direction.

"I'd really appreciate it if you could keep quiet about this... Hinata and I." Naruto continued, placing his hand comfortingly on the dark haired woman's shoulder; the two exchanging a brief yet meaningful glance. Ino calmly resisted the urge to squee. "I don't want you to tell anyone. Not Sakura, not Sasuke, not any of your random customers, or old acquaintances of yours that you bump into on the street. No one. Okay?"

Naruto was gazing directly at her now, his arms folded his expression determined; almost challenging. She was more than familiar with this look. It was one that crossed Naruto's face whenever he spoke seriously about a matter that was genuinely important to him. Whatever the reason, he really did not want her to spread the news about him and Hinata.

"Alright, fine!" She huffed indignantly, crossing her arms over her chest in defeat. She approached Naruto, jabbing him sharply in the chest with her forefinger, the fluid strikes punctuating each word that fell from her lips. "But I. Want. Details."

"Huh?"

"Well, if I can't tell anyone, I want to at least know the full story." Ino spoke as if she were imparting the most obvious, widely understood piece of information in the world.

"What are you talking about?" Naruto responded in confusion, rubbing his chest. "What difference does it make? Hinata and I are together, you know everything you need to know."

"Honestly, you are all pathetic!" She sighed, throwing her arms in the dramatically, before making her way back out to the front of the shop.

"Come on, Hinata," she said, taking the flustered girl by the wrist and guiding her out with her as she passed. "You can fill me in."

"Ano, Ino-san. What about the-" Hinata answered, gesturing to the stock that had yet to be unloaded.

"We can leave the men to finish it," Ino said haughtily, continuing to drag Hinata along. "I'm sure they'll be more than capable of handling it themselves." She emphasised her point by sharply closing the door behind her, leaving not but silence to radiate in the air between the three.

"So... Great work today, guys."

* * *

"Are you sure it's okay for us to do this without Ino here?" Naruto asked, as he helped to finish retrieving the remaining stock. "What if her parents come back?"

"They're out for the weekend." Chouji replied nonchalantly, carefully lowering one of the last few boxes. "Besides, it wouldn't really bother them, anyway. We're old family friends afterall."

"Yeah, don't worry about it too much, Naruto." Shikamaru added, begrudginly deciding to offer his assitance after the number of people working on the task had suddenly almost halfed. "This isn't the first time something like this has happened. Ino probably just needs a bit of time to blow of some steam."

Naruto nodded, satisfied by their answer, and did not probe any further. He was able to find comfort in the silence. He relished in those few seconds, before one particular subject inevitably came up. It was only a matter of time. Naruto felt some apprehensive. He wasn't entirely sure how to address what had taken place just a few moments ago, and was therefore, content to remain silent until prompted. Fortunately, neither of his two companions seemed particular eager to bring it up.

Shikamaru wasn't one to pry, for lack of interest and motivation, and Chouji would be reluctant to intrude at the risk of seeming impolite. So the silence lingered between for a few minutes longer, until it was Chouji, who eventually raised the question.

"So... You and Hinata, huh?"

"Yeah..." Naruto replied, his lips breaking into a soft, genuine smile.

"What exactly brought that on?" Chouji asked, curious. "I mean, we all kind of knew how feels, has always felt, about you. It was pretty much up to you to make the move."

"I don't exactly know," Naruto answered truthfully. "I mean... It all happened so suddenly. I... I reached a point in my life where I felt like everything I had once felt for Sakura was in the past, just a childish crush I'd had. I care for her, I really do, but I think I'd grown out of the prospect of having any romantic connection with her... I had I guess I just had to take the hint about Hinata at some point, huh?"

"Yeah, it sounds like you might finally be maturing." Chouji joked.

"I wouldn't go that far."

"Anyway," Naruto continued, brushing off his friends half-hearted insults. "I hope you guys understand when I ask that you don't tell anyone about this."

"Tch, don't worry about it." Shikamaru scoffed, waving a hand dismissively. "I'm happy for both of you, but sharing the intimate details of others has never really interested me. Why do you think I kept quiet even when I had suspicions?"

"Your secret's safe with us, Naruto," Chouji smiled reassuringly before adding. "Does anyone else know?"

Naruto hand scratched at his chin in contemplation. "No, not that we're aware of, but... We do get the feeling there may be others who have their suspicions."

"Well, if you're conducting yourselves like that, I'm not surprised." Shikamaru answered dryly, gesturing to the back room they had emerged from not long ago.

Naruto chuckled awkwardly, sweat beading at the back of his head.

"I knew there was something suspicious about the way you guys were acting at the Cafe, a couple of days back." Chouji said, "Hinata wasn't really sick, was she Naruto?"

"Heh, no... You got us there." Naruto answered, his hand kneading reflexively at the back of his neck. Shikamaru rolled his eyes.

"Seriously, Naruto. If you want this to remain a secret, I would recommend keeping things on the down-low. Namely the heavy petting sessions one room away from present company." Shikamaru spoke. "We can keep the information to ourselves, but it's pointless if you just end up being caught out again.

"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind." Naruto muttered, his eyes downcast and his cheeks flushing.

While, ideally, he would have preferred the progression of his relationship to have remained a secret, Naruto was actually able to find sollace in the knowledge that Shikamaru, Ino and Chouji were now aware. It meant that they could ease into the process of revealing the surprise to their friends gradually, rather than trying to find an appropriate situation and manner in which to unveil it to them all at once. Naruto shuddered to imagine the chaos that would ensue had they chosen to break the news that way. It would have been Ino's reaction magnified fourfold.

While there was a certain thrill that accompanied the danger of being caught; something that he had derived an unusual pleasure from; he felt that his connection with Hinata had developed beyond such basic carnal urges. He genuinely wanted to be with her. This however, proved somewhat difficult to achieve in a public domain. Especially considering the majority of people close to them were still under the impression they were just friends.

For now, he trusted Chouji and Shikamaru, and well... He was sure they'd be able to keep any Ino from revealing anything, allowing he and Hinata to progress through this on their own terms.

Having Neji; Hinata's cousin; or Kiba and Shino find out; her closest male friends; was completely out of the question. They would adopt those weird, over-protective brother roles of theirs and ask him invasive, personal questions about his intentions with her. Catching him engaged in an impromptu romp with Hinata would only result in severe bodily; most likely testicular; harm. He shuddered at the thought.

Sakura and Sasuke finding out would just be... awkward. Something Naruto still wasn't entirely sure he was ready for. It was going to be awhile before he could muster up the courage to even approach those two.

Yeah, if anyone had had to stumble in on them, he was glad it was Shikamaru, Chouji and Ino.

So long as Ino would be able to keep quiet.

* * *

A/N: For some reason whenever I save a document it keeps removing horizontal lines and any underline used on text. What the fuck, FFnet?

Anyway, sorry again for the mix up. I'll try to bring the rest of this chapter to you as soon as possible. I'd say it's about 80-90% done. There were just a couple of scenes that were giving me a lot of grief, but I'm sure I'll be able to sort them out in the next few days.

As far as this story goes, I'm thinking that every few chapters I'll reveal Naruto and Hinata's relationship to one of the 'Teams' from the Konoha 12. I've done Team 10, and I'll probably do Team 7 last, cause of things still being a bit awkward between Naruto and Sakura. I'm thinking maybe having the rest of Team 8, Shino and Kiba, find out next. Either that or Team Gai (minus Neji). What do you guys reckon?

The chapter's title and Ino wanting details about Naruto and Hinata was inspired by the Seinfeld episode, 'The Deal', where George practically demands details from Jerry about he and Elaine sleeping together. "Now you listen to me..." Haha, classic scene.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this regardless. Please keep reading, reviewing, following, faving; whatever time you can spare is greatly appreciated! Until next time.


	4. The Details

A/N: Hello again, all. Here is part two of the third chapter for Secret Lovers. I would probably recommend reading the previous part over once more first, as I think everything flows together more smoothly that way. It's up to you though. I'm also considering re-editing this story later so these two parts are together as one chapter, but we'll see. Anyway, thanks again for the reviews! I thought I'd reply here to the anonymous reviews that I couldn't respond to via PM.

Guest: That wasn't exactly what I was aiming for, but I can see where you're coming from. I suppose the reason I keep referring to Naruto and Sakura's failed relationship is because I wanted to convey it as being an integral point for Naruto in realising how he; much like the feelings he had for Sakura; has changed over time. It's something I feel would play a vital role in helping him notice Hinata; and how she had always been there for him, even in his weakest moments; leading to the start of their romantic relationship.

This is part of the reason why I was annoyed that I didn't get to publish chapter three in its entirety the last time I updated, and that some things might have been left a little bit unclear... Oh well, such is life. Anyway, thanks for the construction criticism! I hope this chapter clears things up for you and I'm glad to hear you're otherwise enjoying this story!

Read on!

* * *

Secret Lovers

Chapter 3, Part 2: The Details

Today had been quite out of the ordinary, at least for Hinata.

They had arrived at their usual hangout, the cafe, well into the early evening; an hour much later than they normally would. Their numbers were drastically reduced from the typical group of nine they would flock in. For, today it was just her and Ino alone. The reason being Ino was adamant about thoroughly interrogating Hinata on precise details surrounding her current relationship with Naruto.

Hinata had never exactly flourished in one-on-one social interactions, especially when the topic at hand concerned her not so subtle attraction for a certain friend of theirs. She therefore, understandably, wasn't as 'enthusiastic' as her companion. Ino, on the other hand, was shameless and strangely intense when it came to this particular spectrum.

"So Hinata, spill," The blonde spoke boldly, as the pair seated themselves in a small corner booth, having each purchased drinks. "Did you finally work up the nerve to jump Naruto's bones like you've always wanted?"

Hinata almost grasped at the abrupt question and it's rather crude phrasing, before shifting anxiously beneath her friend's expectant gaze. Even after having known Ino for years, she had yet to completely grasp her friend's concise, forward nature, and penchant for gossip. She, by contrast, still experienced difficulties articulating such intimate details of her life.

"Well, I... Not exactly." Hinata answered reluctantly, her index fingers pressing together in apprehension. She trailed off, hoping vainly that the response would be deemed accurate, but already knowing otherwise.

"Come on, Hinata!" Ino exclaimed in mild frustration over her wavering. She loved the girl, but sometimes prying information out of her was nothing short of a chore. "We're girl-friends! If you can't talk to me about this, who can you?"

"I haven't really felt the need to talk to anyone about it." Hinata admitted meekly, her hands warming against the cup of tea she was currently nursing.

"Don't give me that! I know you've been pining after the guy for years now, we all do!" Ino continued loudly, throwing her arms up dramatically, as if to emphasis her point. Hinata flushed in embarassment, as she noticed her friend's increased volume drawing the attention of some of the other patrons.

"I'd always thought that you'd be shouting from the rooftops if you two actually ever got together. I know I'm struggling not to right now."

"I do find it hard to believe sometimes." Hinata answered, studying the steaming liquid before her with a sudden, avid interest, as a faint blush tinged her facial features. Her voice no longer wavering, but resonating calmly and with a sense of self assurance.

"It was something I had always dreamed of, and hoped for, when I was younger. The scenarios in my head were so built-up and dramatic, I knew they couldn't possibly unfold that way in real life. Naruto had never even looked at me as anything other than a friend. At that time, he only had eyes for Sakura-san."

Ino watched on intently, not missing the hint of bitterness marring Hinata's tone. While Ino knew her friend harboured no ill-will towards Sakura; in fact, the mere thought of Hinata regarding anyone in such a manner was laughable; but she could understand how painful and conflicting the situation must have been for her. To witness the man she felt for so deeply, effortlessly captured by a woman who did see him in the same light. The envy Hinata felt towards Sakura was frequently accompanied by pangs of guilt, as she wondered how she could think such things about someone who she admired and considered a friend.

"I had resigned myself to accepting that we would be friends and treasured that we were able to possess such a bond, even though my heart yearned for something more. I wanted Naruto-kun to happy first and foremost, and well... To me, he seemed to enjoy himself the most around Sakura-san."

"When things did eventually... change, between us, I was taken completely by surprise. I thought I had managed to entirely surpress the feelings I felt Naruto-kun, but I was wrong. In that moment, they clenched at my heart, just as strongly as I could ever remember. Everything unfolded so suddenly between us that, for awhile, I wasn't even entirely sure it was real or just my imagination running wild. "

"So... What exactly happened?" Ino spoke softly, seemingly afraid that the mere cadence of her voice would pull Hinata from this reverie.

"Well, it started about three months ago, we were_ supposed_ to be meeting at Naruto's place."

* * *

_"Hey Hinata," Naruto called cheerfully, as he answered the door with a wave. His expression fell into confusion briefly, as he glanced around the perimeter, finding the young woman alone before him."Where's everyone else?"_

_"Here, there and everywhere, really." Hinata answered, a soft smile adorning her features. "Sakura-san and Ino-san both got called into work. Kiba-kun said he had to check Akamaru for ticks. Shino-kun offered to help since he's an expert when it comes to insects. Shikamaru-kun's..."_

_"Sleeping. Or watching clouds, probably." Naruto finished, his eyes rolling._

_"Probably." Hinata giggled, thinking it wouldn't have been unlike Shikamaru to not show up at all, simply declaring the event too 'bothersome'. "He isn't answering his phone."_

_"Well, I was expecting Sasuke, but I can't get a hold of him either." Naruto spoke, glancing briefly down at his own phone. No new messages. "It looks like it might be just us, huh?" He added, stepping away from the door and allowing her entrance._

_"It would appear so." Hinata replied, as she removed her shoes, before joining Naruto in his apartment._

_"That's cool. It's not often we get to hang out one-on-one like this." Folding his arms behind the back of his head, Naruto's brow creased in recollection. "Well, except for Ino's shindig where everyone pulled out at the last minute... That was weird."_

_"Yeah, weird..." Hinata answered, struggling to suppress the sardonic edge to her voice. It was obvious that Ino had set this up. _

_She supposed she could just leave, but she didn't want to appear rude. Not to mention she genuinely enjoyed spending time with Naruto._

_"So, how are things between you and Sakura-san?"_

_"Uh, yeah, about that..." Naruto chringed, his voice suddenly uncharacteristically apprehensive. "We uh- kind of decided to... end things."_

_"Oh? I'm sorry to hear that." She reached over to lightly touch the man's shoulder, in the hopes of offering a sense of support. She might have given up on the notion of any romantic bond existeing between them, but that didn't mean she didn't care as deeply about Naruto as she always had. "Will you be okay?"_

_"Yeah, I'll be fine," he answered, "Actually, I was the one who suggested it at first."_

_"W-what?" Hinata responded in surprise. That was the last thing she had expected to hear. Ever since he was a young teenager it seemed Naruto had only ever had eyes for Sakura. After years passed, and she finally relented, accepting Naruto's offer to go on a date, he had been overjoyed. It was all he'd ever wanted. What exactly could have happened between them to change that?_

_"It just wasn't what I had expected, I guess." Naruto spoke, as if reading her thoughts and responding directly to them. She had only spoken a single word, yet her expression held the questions that Hinata felt she currently didn't possess the courage to ask._

_"For as long as I can remember, I'd romanticised this idea of being with Sakura-chan. To the point that no matter how well things worked out, it would never live up to the fantasies I'd concocted in my head. Those feelings I had for her, they weren't genuine. At least, not in the way I first thought. She and Sasuke were just two of the first I people I met who didn't completely shut me out because of what they'd be told. They actually took the time to get to know me."_

_"I couldn't be happier with how things went between us, actually. I was worried she might be upset; especially considering how much I bothered her just to get one date... It turns out though, that she felt the same way. I'm really relieved, I didn't want to lose her as a friend. Especially because of some stupid childish crush."_

_Hinata listened in fascination as Naruto revealed to her an intimate part of himself she had always suspected had been there, but had never actually witnessed in the flesh, stripped bare before her. Not like she was right now. This part of Naruto was deeper, more mature, yet still possessed the qualities she had always admired; the kindness, the empathy and the utter conviction lacing his voice._

_He was the man she had once believed a young, loud-mouthed blond had all the capabilities of growing up to become._

_If he hadn't said otherwise, Hinata would have assumed he and Sakura's relationship was going perfectly well. He didn't seem upset, about the breakup at all. If anything he appeared to be at ease, as some overwhelming burden strain had been removed from his being. It was unusual._

_"I had an epiphany," Naruto summarised, with a shrug. Again, answering as if he'd been able to read her thoughts clearly. "I was able to realise who had been there for me all along."_

_Hinata swallowed, captivated by the intense penetration of his gaze, as she noticed him shuffle closer to her. Her eyesight suddenly drooping to the firm, naked surface of his collar bone._

_"W-what do you mean?" She spoke, suddenly realising her throat was unusually dry, as her form became rigid, tense._

_Her answer was provided not in the form of rhetoric, but with a caress so brief and tender, she was momentarily unsure if it actually occurred or not. Warm breath tickling flushed cheeks, velvet soft lips sweeping over ivory skin, calloused, strong finger trips trailing lazily over her aching flesh. _

_Her heart trembled with sheer elation as she responded instinctively, tears clinging to her eyelashes. His lips carefully brushed them away, a beautiful, reassuring smile flashing before her lavender irises. _

_"N-Naruto-kun?" Hinata stammered, doubt clinging to her, in spite of his ardent act. "What are you doing?" Her voice a harsh whisper._

_"I'm not as clueless as I look, Hinata," He spoke simply, his voice thick. "I know how you feel about me." _

_Hinata could feel her heart lurch inside of her chest, as her reached over to cup her cheek, drawing her prone body closer to his own. A small, timid part of her fought desperately to stop him; to push him away like the need the she suppressed deep within her. Yet, she knew the struggle was pointless. The ardor, the desire she held for this man, had not faded, in spite of her best efforts. _

_She no longer had any reason to fight._

* * *

"Aha!" Ino exclaimed triumphantly, "I knew my plans weren't in vain! So did you guys, y'know... Go away all the way?" She added with a smirk, her eyebrows raising suggestively.

"Ah, no. We haven't... progressed that far yet, Ino." Hinata replied, surprised that she had been able to make it through such a sentence without stumbling.

"Huh, okay," Ino answered, processing the information. "Well then, what are you guys exactly, right now? Are you a couple, or..."

She trailed off, hoping Hinata would pick up on the implication, without her having to spell out the crass details. Hinata fidgeted under her friend's questioning gaze, pressing her fingertips together nervously. The truth was, she wasn't entirely sure how to answer that question herself.

"Well, we haven't really got into that yet."

"Huh? What do you mean?" Ino said, somewhat taken aback.

"There hasn't really been a lot of discussion, just... action." Hinata elaborated, choosing her words rather carefully. "You know, Naruto-kun, he's not the most... eloquent when it comes to expressing things with words."

"That's an understatement."

"So it hasn't really been 'defined'" Hinata continued, ignoring Ino's jab. "We've decided to keep this a secret, for now. So it's difficult to find an oppurtunity to talk about it. We can't bring it up with everyone else around, otherwise we'd raise suspicion... And well, everyone time we're alone we just seem to end up doing... other things. So really, as much as I love being with him, I'm still not entirely sure what our relationship is just yet."

"That Naruto." Ino sighed, clencing her fist in frustration. "Just when I was going to suggest he maybe wasn't as dense we all thought, I go and learn something like this." She really hoped he wasn't just stringing poor, sweet Hinata along after things hadn't worked out between him and Sakura.

"I know what you're thinking, Ino, and you're wrong." Hinata answred, steadfast and confident. "Naruto-kun isn't like that at all. He is loyal, and caring, particularly when it comes to his friends. I know that he would never dream of harming me, let alone for his own selfish gain. I appreciate your concern Ino, but you need to understand that I'm an adult, and I don't need your guidance. I can look after myself. I've never been happier."

Ino blew her a stray lock of her from her eye through a frustrated exhale.

"Alright, Hinata. If it means that much to you, I can keep it a secret... But I don't want to find you guys making out in my family's shop, again. Got it?"

"Hai, Ino-san." Hinata giggled.

* * *

Upon her return from the cafe, Ino was surprised to find the door to the Flower Shop still unlocked. In spite of the darkness filtering through the window, and the 'closed' sign adorning the front door, Shikamaru and Chouji were still inside, waiting for her.

"What are you guys still doing here?" Ino huffed, as she entered. She was still harbouring some indignation after learning that they'd been actively keeping from secrets her.

"We couldn't exactly look up when you had the keys with you, so we figured we should stick around." Shikamaru answered curtly. "Oh, and you're welcome for the help."

"And what, pray tell, did you do to help, Shikamaru?" Ino responded seethingly.

"More importantly, we said we were going out for Barbeque afterwards," Chouji feigning ignorance to his friends' heated words, eagerly massaging his stomach. "I don't know about you, but I'm sticking with that plan."

"Naruto already left earlier, so it's just us." Shikamaru spoke, feeding his arm through the sleeve of his jacket in preparation to leave.

"Uh huh..." Ino nodded absently, her expression blank and voice impassive, as if she wasn't completely paying attention to them. "Why don't you guys go on ahead without me? I have to lock up, so I'll catch up with you in a minute."

"Alright," Chouji called, as he made his way out.

Shikamaru however, remained rooted firmly on the stop, not yet showing any desire to leave.

"What are you up to, Ino?" Shikamaru asked, tailing her as she shifted unconsciously through her inane routine of closing up.

"Closing up the shop?" Ino offered, her nose wrinkling in confusion. "You said we were going out and I-"

"You know what I mean," he said, his lean digits fisting through his hair in mild annoyance. "What happened with you and Hinata?"

Ino drew a breath in deeply, finding it pointless to feign innocence before someone as intuitive and sharp as Shikamaru.

"Look, I know we've agreed to keep it a secret, and I'm going to, but..."

"But?" He prompted. Troublesome, I don't like where this is going.

"I can hardly be blamed if the others were to find out on there own, right? I know they've gone unnoticed for weeks; probably months, even; but they're being kind of careless now. I mean, look at how easily were stumbled upon them today."

"I suppose so. Though it really depends."

"On what?"

"On whether or not you're planning to try and influence others into finding out about Naruto and Hinata's relationship."

"Do you really think I would betray a friend's trust like that? It pains me to know that you think so lowly of me, Shika." Ino exclaimed, clutching her hand over her heart dramatically."

"If the shoe fits."

"I told Naruto I wasn't going to say anything and I'm staying true to my word..."

"But...?"

"I may lay a few traps here and there, just so that it seems like they found on their own. I'm not, technically, breaking any promises that way."

"Why do I get a bad feeling about this?" Shikamaru sighed in exasperation.

"Oh, come on Shika! I know Naruto and Hinata said they wanted to tell everyone in their own time, but really, if you left it up them it'd be years before anyone else found out. I love them both, but really they're hopeless! If you think about it, I'm doing them a favour. I'm speeding up the process and removing all of those awkward conversations-"

"Right, whereas stumbling in on them in a compromising position like we did earlier today, won't be awkward at all."

"They handled it okay." She shot back, waving her hand dismissively.

"Sure, better than you did at least." He smirked.

"Say what you want, Shikamaru, I've made up my mind." Ino spoke, seemingly not phased by his comment.

"There's nothing I can say to change your mind, is there?"

"Nope!" She answered cheerfully, a bright smile lighting up her features, as she moved to open the front door.

"Alright," Shikamaru answered resignedly, following her outside into the night. "But if either of them ask me about this, I'm not going to lie for you."

"Of course! I wouldn't expect anything less of you, Shikamaru." Ino winked, carefully locking the door behind them.

Again, standard procedure.

* * *

A/N: So, can we all just take a moment to appreciate how badass Hinata was in the latest Naruto chapter? Seriously, she has come so far and experienced some amazing growth since the beginning of this manga. She's definitely become the amazing kunoichi I think we all know she had the makings of being.

Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! It's a little on the filler side, I guess. I was hoping to include another cliff-hanger but it didn't work out that way in the end. Hopefully a scheming Ino makes up for it, though!

Uh, I've also created a poll in my profile that I'd appreciate you guys checking out, as it pertains to a potential NaruHina story that I would be very interested in hearing your feedback for. Until next time!


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